One person was seriously injured and two pets died in a fire that broke out on the seventh floor of a downtown Ottawa apartment building on Tuesday afternoon. The Ottawa Fire Services say they received a 911 call reporting active alarms inside a high-rise on McLeod Street near Cartier Street at about 5:55 p.m. Firefighters at the scene brought in a hose line to battle the flames. Ottawa Fire Services public information officer Nick DeFazio says the fire was able to be contained to one unit of the 14-storey apartment building. One dog and one cat were found dead inside the unit, DeFazio says. Paramedics spokesperson Nic Guertin says crews responding to the scene could see smoke coming from outside of the building. One person was taken to hospital by ambulance in serious but stable condition, Guertin says. Another person was treated for injuries but was released. The fire was put out shortly after 7:15 p.m. Fans were brought in to ventilate residual smoke from the building, and an air quality test confirmed the building was safe for residents to re-enter. The cause and origin of the fire is still under investigation.
